Ottawa-Glandorf, Alter top D-II girls poll

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The girls basketball teams from Ottawa-Glandorf and two-time defending Division II state champion Kettering Archbishop Alter could be on a collision course to meet in the final for a second consecutive season.

Ottawa-Glandorf leads the latest Associated Press D-II poll with a 13-0 record while Alter (11-2) is second. The Knights defeated Ottawa-Glandorf 74-48 in March for the title. Ottawa-Glandorf was the Division III runner-up in 2015 before moving up a classification last season.

Several other 2016 state finalists are also ranked in the girls poll. Mason, which lost the championship game to Wadsworth, is second in Division I. State champion Columbus Africentric is fifth in Division III and Division IV winner Waterford is third in its division.

On the boys side, defending Division I champion Westerville South is 10th. Division II state runner-up Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary is 12th in D-II. Cleveland Villa Angela-St. Joseph, runner-up in Division III, is ranked 10th in the division. Defending D-IV champ Willoughby Cornerstone Christian is sixth.

Girls sectional play begins Feb. 13, culminating in the state tournament March 16-18 at Value City Arena in Columbus. Boys sectional games start Feb. 20. The state tourney is March 23-25 at the same venue.

FOR THE RECORD

Haviland Wayne Trace’s Ethan Linder became both the school and Paulding County’s all-time leading scorer with a 40-point effort during a 63-53 win over Edgerton. Linder surpassed the mark of 1,737 career points by 1993 Wayne Trace grad Rob Welch. . Findlay Liberty-Benton’s Anthony Masterlasco scored a school-record 46 points in the Eagles’ 63-58 overtime win over Van Buren. That broke the mark of 44 points set by former Ohio State standout Aaron Craft in 2010. . Mount Blanchard Riverdale’s Lexie Wright grabbed a school-record 26 rebounds, topping the previous record of 25 held by Karen (Kin) Fox, in the Falcons’ 69-34 win over Dola Hardin Northern.

STREAKS

Kansas Lakota’s boys basketball team ended a 29-game losing streak with a 52-38 win over Tiffin Calvert on Dec. 16. The Raiders then went on a tear, posting three straight wins and four in their next five games. . Jacob Kloepfer hit seven 3-pointers and scored 22 points as Vanlue’s boys team ended a 39-game losing streak with a 63-59 win over Dola Hardin Northern. . Meanwhile, Upper Sandusky (13-0) ran its regular-season winning streak to 35 straight with an 82-54 win over North Robinson Colonel Crawford.

NOTABLES

With a 34-point effort in a win over Garfield Heights, Dane Goodwin of Upper Arlington topped the 1,000-point barrier midway through his junior season. Goodwin, a 6-foot-5 guard, committed to Ohio State before his freshman season. … Another OSU recruit, Westerville South’s 6-foot-10 senior Kaleb Wesson topped 1,000 points as well. … In starting 12-0, Columbus South has equaled its best start since the 1941-42 season. . Heath senior Denton Jacob scored 14 points in the Bulldogs’ 59-40 victory against Newark Licking Valley to eclipse the 1,000-point mark. Despite being a 6-foot-2 guard, he is one of the Bulldogs’ top rebounders. Entering the week, Jacob had helped the Bulldogs to the top of the Licking County League-Cardinal Division standings. . Defiance Ayersville’s 6-foot-7 junior Ethan Schlachter had 19 points and 18 rebounds in a 53-30 win over Antwerp. . Napoleon’s Brett Lauf hit seven 3-pointers and finished with 43 points in a 69-67 loss to Holland Springfield.

Columbus Grove’s Paige Bellman had 18 points, 10 rebounds, six steals and five blocked shots in a 56-39 win over Lima Central Catholic, and she followed it up with 16 points, 12 rebounds, four steals and four blocks in a 58-47 victory over Leipsic. . Ottoville’s girls team scored the game’s first 42 points, including 33 in the first quarter, in a 86-24 win over Continental.

MILESTONE

Arcadia’s girls basketball team handed Old Fort its first loss, and gave head coach Randy Baker his 500th career win, when the Redskins knocked off the Stockaders 54-52. Baker owns a 500-257 record in his 34 seasons at Arcadia. He is the 19th girls basketball coach in Ohio to reach 500 victories. Baker took one team to the Final Four (1989), made regional appearances in 1984 and 2013 as well, and has guided the Redskins to six outright or shared Blanchard Valley Conference championships.